New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-10-02
BITS OF CURRENT CHAT.
NOTES OF MEN AND AFFAIRS TAKEN IN
PUBLIC PLACES.

10 Countou . Vctcrhn But no mas guy mony yoofs
to live before he como up to tho standard Of .
veteran In the Mackaye family. was talking with
him tho other night when he told mo that bis father
rugged sootchman eghty-six years Of ago, Is still
as vigorous and hearty as man OF hfty' ana COOS
travelling about tho European Continent for pleasure
- II his ength Of years to run into tho hundreds
Mr.. Mackaye's great grandfather. on his fsthers
mothers sde had o most remarkable record for lon
Kevity. His namo was John Morrison. He was an
old Covenanter and lived to be 122 years OF ago He
was preacher who began his pulpit efforts at tho ago
Of eighteen years. For Just century hs christened
baptized. married and performed tho burial service In
tho Same parish Mr.. Mackaye has COPY OF the Bble
In which there IL inscription written oy ms aged
ancestor after he had passed tho century miietono
Tho handwriting Ia Hne and perfect a. copper
plato Stecle Mackaye himself II . robust specimen
Of manhood but he doesn't expect to roach tho years
Of his seniors.
Meeting G. A. Capp in Twenty -third-st day or
two ago inquired Of him about the book traho' In
which no IL prominently engaged. Said he' III you
to listen only wall Street you form tho immeo
ate conclusion that business IL bad everywhere but
matter Of fact In limo Of business we haVo not
had better trado in years. People seem to want 70
buy everything else but stocks, and stocks they DO not
want at any price Tho book trade IL areany showing
out holiday goods at astonishing rato ana tho oo
mand indicates beyond any question tho genera pros
perity Of tho country. We arc importing
picture books from abroad this year ~ wo DID last
They made in Germany which has taken tho n'an-
ufacture away from England within few years"
Bits Of comment heard in public conveyances arc
often refreshing and Instructive Riding uptown "
. Broadway car I hoard lady say to hcr oompanon'
Broadway Is all for the mon. In riding up snu u""n
since have como homo from abroad ma Il nnoo
with new places of resort but all for tho mon Inero
arc cafes and bufiets and restaurants ana SALOONS
and cgarstorcs In every block until thero % n''o
room for anything else but drug stores shoud ne"o
thought that In building up Broadway some st'onuon
would have been paid to tho ladies' About our only
privilege Is to walk the sidewalks and DO admired
II we arc handsome criticised II VIC arc homeiy or
unfashionable In attire. Broadway does not please
me in its present condition"
Tho hotel centre of TcwYo'k mas steadily gone up
town until It is now located between Twentythir and
Thirty third Broadway, with the Filth Avenue
Hotel and tho Hoffman House As tho cniof rosorts'
few hotels have boon cft in tho older part OF the
city where the history OF Other great cities iurhshos
any basis for Judgment they are likely to become OK
ceedingy prosperous Indeed that Ia already truo OF
the Astor, Metropolitan and Brcvoort, which STAND
somewhat Isolated from tho hotel centre, out arc
nevertheless crowded with guests almost to year
around Tho figures with reference to hotel rents and
hotel profits and expenses up into tho hundred
thousands Hitchcock, Darling Co. pay
SIso,oOo annually for the rent Of the Fifth Avenue
Hotel An important part OF this, however, Is TO
turned them through sublcting business places on
the first floor A. Item Of whas some OF the priv
IIeges OF a hotel arc worth Il Is said that they have re-
fused IS 900 year rental for their cigar stand which
occupies space 0xl2 feet In the great bar room Tho
old part Of the Hoffman House. which contains the
Office and the bar, Is under lons lease at $1,000
stands and some othor privileges about tho house by
which they receive $4,000 annually. There are Two
catch penny, rather catch nickel devices IN tho
Holman House. Ono Ia a miniature steam engine,
which Is set In motion by depositing nich IN more
and starts the machine In notion am told that mo
average receipts from this source are 80 DAY, %hn
$40 day l. tho average from weighing machine
which operates on tho same principle
Colonel william Terry Fog the author and tray
ell r. hid recently . curious experience, which gre"
out OF an acquaintance formed b. him In Egypt II
seems that he met there young Englishman VINO
was known among tho travellers "Tom," and about
whose fortunes aud msfortunos Colonci Fogg wrote
chapter two In one Of his books This was t"eiVo
years ago. Three months ago ho received from i&ny
living In Rochester, Ncw.YOrk letter inqunns u ho
had ever travelled In Egypt and saying that she han
ietter deliver to him In due course OF timo mo
letter camo to hand 1t addressed TO Coiohoi
Foru Obio- 1t was from the mother OF tho young
rnrishman "Tom," thanking Colonel Fogg Tor DIS
kindness to her son, and expressing tho Wish W "
him q, their home IN England shonia no o'e' '"''
tina, copn,ry Tho circumstances under which 1t camo
o. hs transmi;,ei " him with such an adress "ero
col. ed IA, hls Rochester CORES pondcnt. she was
sn"adIne IN. summer on tho coast OF England siL
yeas age, when she made the acquAn',neo C,a,ei
mCtLer wio began b. inquire VI sho nnew ,o,on hat
Ioro 40 America, having evidently tho NOTION .nss
Ioss u ~ c.rtan classes In England that America
IL so small that everybody IN IL mus. Ao ~ ds
- M Roches or lady found II Impossible 70 us
U.s. 49,. o,hers mind OF this idea when enc ~.
H. Jnndon she found this lettor 10 no,o ,rso shc
y, 80 ere With the request TO deliver u who" @
IN ncr ar tide ~ the water. Tho letter had poon
=, hnr M. sssIon for six years WHOM ehe sa" a,s
Foggs namo ia TIE ~ thousand that he
him on .i,o ~ Tbo ono chance turned out q lucky ono
r g., ~ case and colonel fogs so' us ''''''
duo time ,. ,,,,r
=, talking with book publishers ana printers VIM"
49,. aavs I 0nd that they anticipating al an cary
General introd uctlon OF typesettlng machinery.
~. hook prlntcrs OF New York have recehny ~A'1 ~
,h.,r .mniovers n reduction Of hours, rom 70" y. -
per day. which with other changes ~ .n' ,.r cent
matter will amount to an Increase VI - ono a.,
in their wages. ). }. Ittle' OF hstorpa' us savs
A.. o,a.st employing printers In tho "ty. ~. -
.no - ~. rc.rnt time typcsotrng can DO oo"o ~
III ,owns outside OF New-YoIk a. euch = cnstom
Sinai Iii he impossible to retain any la y, tscpncs
inside the c, n.y., ween Ncw-York City and these cnn,
lawns "a very great. amounting 10 Ioolng forward
In some caSes ama od"con Of yosong macnnery
The Albany Evening 5ourn mac ST which fully one
setting machine into is oi nsoer Il set Mr.. Arkc
savs that the machine VIII oo o'o" '
tyoc than newspaper type
,,o,,ow Johnson, OF Mississippi VINO we =.
'''sn tho other day, spoke In this vein u
southern affairs; "Tho war was sOoa , IN two
=, tho SOUTH said no. ait was sooo ul,s .. ,,s
WAYS We had always had very poor op"v ~. Knew
wy, =. ,,s North when tho war was over "' Ah'"
-, hind of material thoy wero mado o. Aha ~0
w WI" , s hold poor opinion Of them again. On
tho other hand think that tho mon Vi 'no WIN u,
to regard In much the same sy wa yc n over sa
sor. vi bnn,v the other better. AZ for the slaVos
,so south Is Lctor OFF without them he eavo bssg
w osycioned there to-day IL never wcuin haso ooon
dor iavory Wo are feeling omethlhg Oh tno ssn,o
vccr that you have felt at no noru w' ''''
men through the effort Oh selFp'oS'iN""oA
A philadelphian who is ot,ttn in NowYork IL Is e
II. warren He made a small mint OF money IN gas
works and other public cnG&nses' anu ~" o.,